Protect
by startscribbling12
Summary: The way to love anything is to realize that it may be lost. Semi-AU D/T


Dante lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling. His guns lay discarded on the floor, making him look totally unprepared for an attack. He was always prepared though. He always had Rebellion with him. Maybe always prepared was a bit of an overstatement. There were times where he wasn't prepared. Times where he felt like he could not do anything.

Like that time where he was stuck in Limbo and Kat was shot. There was nothing he could do. He couldn't even grab her hand, as they were in two different planes of existence. That day he felt like his heart was being ripped out and stomped on. He was powerless.

Even though the trade was somewhat successful and Kat was back in The Order's (or what was left of it) hands, he couldn't stop thinking about it. Even though she walked around with a smile on her face with her arm in a makeshift sling, he beat himself up about it. If he was stronger, he could have prevented that. He told himself that. That fact was, of course, not true because he was stuck in Limbo. He couldn't have helped her.

Dante let out a grunt and glared at the ceiling in distaste. Fuck the demon scum. He was going to slaughter every last one of them until Kat was safe. If he didn't, Kat was always going to be in danger. She was only human, and that day in the Octagon proved it. The only reason she was left alive is because Mundus wanted him. He put her in so much danger just being around her and associating with her. Every moment she leaves his sight is a moment where she could be killed. The thought tore Dante to shreds. He wouldn't be able to cope with that.

That moment in the Octagon between them made Dante able to do something he was unable to do since childhood. It made him able to care—able to _love_—something. Knowing that Kat could have been taken away from him opened up so many emotions in him that he never thought he was capable of. Though the thought of loving Kat made him even more angry. He wasn't worthy of her, nor should she be around him. At the same time, though, he was the only one able to protect her.

And he vowed to do just that. He was going to protect her. There was no going back now. The demons know of her. The demons will kill her. Pushing her out of his life now will just ruin the both of them and get her killed. And he wouldn't be able to live with himself if that happened.

A knock sounded at his door, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"Come in," He called mechanically. He was drained of energy. He was trying to get as much rest as he could before he and Vergil stormed Mundus's lair.

The door cracked open and Kat peeked her head in. She had been worried about Dante for these past couple of days. He had been shut up in his room as soon as she was patched up. She tried smiling as much as she could around him, to let him know she was okay, but he just wouldn't get out of the depression that he was in. It bothered her.

Walking in and shutting the door behind her, she gave out a heavy sigh. "Dante, you can't shut yourself up in here until the mission."

"Why not?" He asked with a dark and humorous tone.

Giving him a slight scowl, she strolled over to his bed and stood over him, her injured arm held closely to her. "Because, Dante. You just can't. We need you out there."

"Vergil is the one doing all the planning. And you already have the maps. What good am I out there right now? Just tell me where to go and I'll go."

"You just have to be out there Dante. I just—I want you out there with us."

Dante stared up at her, eyebrows furrowed. Not in anger, but in confusion.

"Dante, you saved my life. I just, I don't know how to repay you," She told him, sitting on the edge of the bed, her back to him.

"You don't have to repay me. I wasn't going to let you die," He told her, sitting up on one arm.

Kat bit her lip. She had been so strong throughout all of this. Never once did she cry. Not even when she was scared to death of being shot, seeing her friends killed, or anything like that. She never once cried. She wasn't going to cry now.

Suddenly, she felt a hand on her back, circling in comforting motions. Her eyes went wide, allowing a hint of tears to appear in the corners of them as she turned to look at Dante. He had become quite nice and caring over their time together, but this was unexpected. He had always comforted her through words, not touch.

"Holding it all in will only destroy you," He said seriously, his grey-blue eyes boring into her green-ish ones.

And that as all she needed. She just let it spill out, the tears running out her face. She thought about covering her face, but she didn't want to reopen the wounds above her eyes. So she just sobbed with her head facing her lap, her hand gripping the end of her shorts. Behind her, she felt Dante sit up and wrap his arms around her, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"It's okay," He said to her, and she felt his warm breath hit her neck. "Everything is going to be alright."

"I just—" She sobbed, her shoulders shaking. Her tiny, petite body could barely contain the convulsions. "I don't want you two to die on me. I don't—I don't want _you _to die on me."

She felt him chuckle slightly. "After all you have been through, you're worried about us? Kat, we're not human, so we can take a pretty hellish beating."

"You can still die. I don't want you to die and leave me all alone. I feel like you going into Mundus's lair is like sending you to your death," Kat cried, raising her hand to wipe her cheek.

"No one is going to die anymore, okay?" He said, lightly kissing her shoulder, causing butterflies to rise in Kat's stomach, not only from embarrassment but from shock. She wasn't used to this kind of behavior from him.

She turned to look at him, her eyes rimmed with smeared makeup, and he looked up at her from his position on her shoulder with a smile.

"I won't die on you Kat. I have to live to protect you."

* * *

_Hey guys! This was a bit darker, but it has a smudge of romance going on! This takes place after the trade and before the mission to infiltrate Mundus's lair. In fanfiction universe, this takes place after Birthday! I'll get that numbering system up soon! I hope you liked it, and review please!_


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